Michael Aakhus

European, as well as Mexican and Central American cultures, have surfaced as a major interest in my art. In particular I have examined Mesoamerican art history, as well as the persistence of indigenous cultures into the colonial and modern worlds.

I have traveled extensively in this region, and since 1996 have led study tours to the region. I have walked the great avenue at Teotihuacan, waded through streams in the Lacandon rainforest, examined the ancient papermaking tradition in remote villages of the Eastern Sierra Madre, pondered the sculptures of the Forest of Kings in Honduras, and examined the politics and murals of Tamayo, Rivera, Orozco and Siqueiros.

Many of my paintings and artist books have been guided by my interest in the same cultures. My paintings have been influenced by magical realism, and I create works that try to capture a mystical sense of place that incorporates multiple points of view and geographical settings.

My translucent and brilliant jewel-like color reflects landscape at its most mystical moment. The landscapes are inspired by and reflect centuries of occupancy from Neolithic to modern times. The paintings make no attempt to capture a specific moment. Rather, they reflect a sense of continuous historical, aesthetic and mystical purpose, an artistic statement which is a harmonious mark upon the land.

In my artist books I have collaborated with poets, anthropologists, linguists, art historians and fiction writers. These books represent differing levels of collaboration on topics where I have created intaglio images, and the scholars and writers have contributed texts. The prints in these artist books are done in the medium of intaglio using etched copper plates wiped with yellow, red and blue inks to give the richness that only this medium can provide. These works have been exhibited both nationally and internationally.

Whether in Europe, Egypt, Mexico or Central America, all the elements of these places: the stones, the trees, the elevated views, have been shared by successive groups of peoples. As I experienced a monument, landscape or artifact my sequential perception of history seemed trivial. What became important was man’s shared aesthetic insight across time and its coexistence with nature. The language and modes of expression in architecture or stone are all different, but the profound sense of artistic kinship shared by many cultures became one with my own.

My paintings and prints are an attempt to give visual form to these insights.